Suspicions
by 554Laura
Summary: A one shot story written for the Bonesology challenge which states that someone on the program suspects someone else of being an alien. I don't own Bones...


_A/N: with apologies to Ryan O'Neal and in celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of Star Trek._

"Booth, have you noticed that Christine has been acting strangely lately?" Brennan sat down next to her husband on the sofa. "I mentioned to her that she and Hank were going to stay with Max this weekend, and she started to cry, saying she didn't want to go to his house."

"That is strange. She usually loves staying with Max. I mean, I guess he can be a scary dude…" Booth cringed slightly as he noticed his wife's unhappy expression at that statement. "...but he's always been really good with the kids. Did she say why she didn't want go to his house?"

"She wouldn't tell me. All she would say was that she didn't want to go over there." Brennan shook her head thoughtfully. "I suggested that he could come here, but she didn't like that idea either. This is upsetting for me as well. I suppose we could cancel our plans for this weekend, but there are many other times when we need Max to stay with the children if we have to work late. I don't want to traumatize Christine, but I also don't know what else to do…"

"I guess we should just ask her again." Booth smiled as he put his arm around his wife. "It could be something easy to fix, like maybe she doesn't like the food he has at his house. Let's see if she can get her to tell us." He rose from the sofa and walked toward the hallway leading to his daughter's bedroom. "Christine? Mommy and I want to talk to you, Sweetheart…"

The little girl came skipping into the family room. "Here I am…"

"Good!" Booth patted the sofa on a spot between him and Brennan. "Come here and sit with us." Christine snuggled between her parents. "Mommy says that she told you that you were going to stay with Grandpa Max this weekend, and that you don't want to go…"

Christine shook her head as her lower lip trembled. "I don't want to go to his house."

Concerned, Booth glanced at Brennan before continuing cautiously. "Maybe he can come here instead…"

"No!" Christine started to cry. "He shouldn't come to our house. That would be scary."

"Christine, you've never been afraid of your grandfather before now. What has happened to change your mind?", Brennan asked. She bit her lip before she continued, not wanting to consider the worst possible scenario. "Did he hurt you somehow?"

Christine wiped away her tears as she shook her head. "No, but he might. Grandpa Max isn't like us."

Booth nodded. "That's true...he is definitely not like us." He grimaced as he noticed his wife's scowl. "Christine, you haven't ever been afraid of your grandfather. You've always had fun when you went to visit at his house. Why would you be afraid of him now?"

"Because Grandpa Max is from outer space. He's an alien." Christine's tone of voice seemed to indicate that she thought this bit of information was obvious. "I just found out. He's been hiding it."

Booth and Brennan both struggled to keep from laughing at their daughter's statement. Finally Booth asked for an explanation. "Why do you think Grandpa Max is an alien, Christine?"

"Well, his skin is all white with lots of spots. And the last time I was over there, he was acting funny. He told me that his heart runs on batteries. And you know what? He can take all of his teeth out and put them back in whenever he wants. And you know what else? He put his finger in this little plastic container and then stuck his finger in his eye and he said he could see better. And his tummy makes scary noises, and his knees are squeaky. His hands make this cracking noise when he stretches them. I think he's a robot from outer space, and I don't want him to hurt me or to take me to outer space when he goes back. "

"Sweetheart…", Brennan chuckled. "...all of those things can be explained. Your grandfather has a pacemaker with batteries to help his heart beat in the correct rhythm. That's normal. He wears artificial teeth called dentures because he lost his real teeth, and he wears contact lenses to help him see better. A lot of people wear contact lenses. You know that sometimes your daddy's tummy makes scary noises and his knees and feet squeak and creak, too, but Grandpa Max had his knee replaced and it creaks a bit. None of those things mean that your grandfather is an alien."

"But Daddy and I watched a television show about robots from outer space, and they were made from different parts like Grandpa is, and they could change their parts with each other and then they absorb each other. They had white skin and lived in a big cube and they said resistance was fertile, and they took over other people's bodies…"

Finally Booth realized what Christine meant, and he laughed out loud. "Christine, Star Trek is make believe. It's science fiction, alright? There aren't really any scary people called the Borg, okay? It's not real. Grandpa Max hasn't been assimilated by them. He just has artificial things, like his teeth, that replace the real things that he lost. He's still your grandpa, okay? He loves you, and he would never hurt you."

Christine still wasn't sure. "Why does he take his teeth out? That's icky."

"He does that so he can clean them better. I bet if you ask him, he'll show you how he does that." Brennan gave her daughter a gentle hug. "I know it's hard to understand, but lots of older people have artificial teeth. That's why you have to take good care of your teeth, so you don't have to wear dentures. So now that you know why Grandpa does all of these things, do you think it'll be okay for you to stay with him this weekend?"

"I guess so. I really do love Grandpa Max. I don't want to be scared of him…" Christine wrinkled her nose as she considered what her mother explained to her. "You're sure he's not an alien?"

"Of course I'm sure, Sweetheart. You know you can trust Daddy and me to tell you the truth." Brennan smiled at her daughter. "Why don't you go pick out some books to take with you to Grandpa's house, okay? You know how much he likes it when you read to him."

"Alright, Mommy." Christine rose from the sofa and started for her room, pausing as she turned back to her parents. "I'm really glad Grandpa's not an alien, but I'm not sure about Uncle Jack…"

Booth laughed again as he turned to his wife. "Yeah, I'm not sure about Hodgins, either. Anyway, I guess I should be more careful about what I let Christine watch on television. It never occurred to me that she would believe the things in that episode were real."

"She has a very active imagination. At least she was able to tell us what was bothering her instead of keeping it a secret. I'm sure Max will see the humor in the situation." Brennan giggled as her husband pulled her into a close embrace. "Are you trying to assimilate me, Booth?"

"Well, Bones, you know what they say…" He grinned as he twitched an eyebrow at her. "Resistance is futile…."


End file.
